The art of boat ramp design has received an enormous amount of attention over the years, with the result that a multitude of options for boat ramp design have been created. In short, this field of technology is extremely highly developed.
Unfortunately, however, despite its highly developed nature, it appears that little or no serious attention has heretofore been given to a ramp design using a keel roller of long axial length in combination with hull support rollers to preclude or at least substantially minimize the risk of unsightly scratches or other damage to a boat during ramp use. There appears to have been great emphasis heretofore on nice little keel rollers, and especially a plurality of aligned little keel support rollers, with concomitant reduction of the number of lateral hull support rollers to one or two and the consequent relatively higher risk for bow and keel damage as well as for poor balance of a boat on such a ramp.
Everyone heretofore seems to have liked a winch for pulling a boat out of the water onto a ramp, but when it comes to ladder-style ramps, little attention seems to have been given to simplified but effective bracing for the winch assembly.
Some ramps heretofore proposed have had articulated sections; others have had the entire ramp structure mounted for pivot operation. Such expedients create balancing issues and generally require a fair amount of energy for successful operation. Any excessive expenditure of energy is looked upon by most boat enthusiasts as less than ideal.
Much to be desired has been a boat ramp of exceedingly simple design, a design calculated to minimize the risk of scratching and other damage to a boat, a design with good hull support to maintain boat stability during ramp storage, and a design with operational features contributing to ease of boat storage as well as fast and easy launching capability. This invention is directed toward those goals. Further, in its most preferred form, the invention additionally provides a ramp design permitting the unassembled components to be conveniently and compactly packaged for shipment as parcel packages to almost any location desired without exorbitant shipping expense. This becomes especially noteworthy when it is recognized that boat ramps normally have only enjoyed relatively local area markets as distinguished from national market penetration. It also is especially noteworthy when combined with the fact that the components of the preferred new boat ramp of this invention can be easily and conveniently assembled using readily available and widely used tools.